The speed of electronic devices is achieved by miniaturizing electronic components to a very small micron-size scale so that those electrons need to travel only very short distances within a very short time. Current technology is approaching its fundamental limits in the sub-micron miniaturization process. Further miniaturization introduces several technological problems such as dielectric breakdown, hot carriers, and short channel effects. Optical interconnections and optical integrated circuits provide a way out of these limitations to computational speed and complexity inherent in conventional electronics. Optical components use photons traveling in waveguides instead of electrons to perform the appropriate functions. Optical circuits guide, redirect, trap, and manipulate photons. Thus, there is a need to develop materials to facilitate these actions.
Present technology relies on physical components whose size is large compared to the wavelength of the light being transmitted. For example, currently, light is bent by 90 degrees by guiding it along an optical fiber whose the bend radius is millimeters or greater. By contrast, with photonic crystals, light propagates down straight channels and can be redirected around corners which are a thousand times smaller (a micron in size), thus enabling the entire circuit to be miniaturized. The photonic crystal can also be modified to trap and manipulate the photons. Hence, there is a need to develop photonic crystal components so that photonic circuits can process photons in a way comparable to how electronic circuits process electrons.